Frienship's Light
by Erin Elric
Summary: They are always there for each other no matter what. A series of one shots looing into the Bros friendship. Takes place in different parts of the game and possibly some from the anime
1. Chapter 1

Friendship's light

The Prince awake from his nap when he heard a noise. He's eyes jolted open with almost a snap like reaction. This was not the first time he had been woken up like this. He looked over at his best friend who was curled up in a tight ball, his mouth moving a few times making a mumbling noise.

Noctis had known his friend to have pretty vivid nightmares. He discovered this the first time his friend stayed the night at his apartment and woke him up screaming like his life was about to end.

The Prince's eyebrows furrowed as he rolled over to face his friend. Noctis was familiar with nightmares himself, many times he would relive that attack from the Nagi and the day he seen Tenebrae burn down, as far as he knew though he didn't act out on those nightmares.

Carefully he reached out to his friend. He didn't want to scare him but he wanted to calm him down before panic set in leaving Prompto in a screaming mess. Noctis flinched remembering that night wishing he knew what to do before it got worse.

"Prom," he said softly laying his hand on his friend's arm.

The blonde's face twitched a few times and he grumbled a, "No please."

He rubbed his arm. "It's going to be okay." He whispered hoping his words reached his friend.

Prompto stopped mumbling then his eyes slowly opened. "Noct?" he asked half asleep.

"I'm here."

The gunman gave a half smile. "I woke you up again didn't you?"

He nodded. "Yeah but its okay. I couldn't sleep because of Gladio's snoring."

He cracked a half smile. "Okay," He put his hands under his pillow of his bed roll. "I really hate camping." He mumbled as he shivered

Noctis figured his shivering was from the nightmare and not so much as the cold. The Prince listened to see if the others were awake or not. The down side to camping is they didn't have a lot of space in the tent. Allegedly it was supposed to fit up to six people but he supposed the tent makers didn't consider big dudes like Gladio. "Come here." He whispered reaching out to his friend.

Prompto wiggled a little closer to him. It wasn't often that Noctis acted affectionate, usually when he couldn't be teased by the older men. The prince viewed his gunman like a brother. Even though they were the same age he always looked after him, defended him from bullies and helped him with his nightmares. "Thanks Noct." He whispered as he rested his head on his arm.

Noctis yawned. "No problem. Just don't kick me in the middle of night."

The blond responded with. "Well don't drool on me."

Noctis gave him a playful hit him on the head. "I don't drool."

"Sure," he mumbled his eyes drifted closed and like that the gunman drifted back to sleep/

The prince shortly followed after his friend's breath went even and soft. The anxieties from the day seemed to melt as he realized he was surrounded by his dearest friends.

The next day Noctis woke up with Prompto still lying on his arm. Carefully he extracted himself from his friend and left the tent.

Outside Ignis was starting on breakfast. "Noct, I see you're up early."

He yawned and nodded. "Yeah," he walked over to the grill. "Need some help?"

"Sure." He said passing him some food to cut.

There was a brief silence as the two worked until the advisor stated

"I see that Prompto had another nightmare."

Noctis nodded. Ignis also knew about Prompto's frequent nightmares. "Yeah… he seems to be having them more often now."

Ignis nodded. "That's to be expected, after all that has happened so far."

He nodded. The fall of their home was a tough pill for them to take but he couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to the situation then what was let on.

The advisor smirked. "You could talk to him about it."

Noctis sighed, "I know but you know how he gets."

He did know Prompto had a tenancy despite being the most talkative out of the four of them to shut down completely when it came to his personal life. Prompto's business was his own business, Ignis respected this he let the boy have his privacy. He had more adviser for Noctis but their topic of conversation emerged out of the tent with a mighty yawn.

"What's for breakfast?" he asked

"Omelet and a fruit salad."

"My favorite." The blond exclaimed ginning. He walked over to the table. "Is coffee ready?"

Noctis smirked. "Yeah," he poured his friend and himself a cup and joined him at he chairs. He listened to Prompto talk with energy over their coffee. Any trace of the nightmare was long gone now. Maybe he over thought it, he sipped his coffee as they planned the days event. He'll talk to Prompto maybe not today or tomorrow but soon.


	2. Chapter 2

Friendship's Light

Chapter 2

Always wear your jacket

Ignis had long since lost count of how many times he had told Noctis to wear his jacket when it's cold. "You'll catch a cold if you don't wear your jacket." A phrase he had to repeatedly tell the young prince reminding him to take care of himself when traveling outside.

Gladio a few times teased Ignis accusing him of being motherly to the young prince. The advisor could ignore the teasing as it was part of his job to look after the chosen king. The advisor had promised Noctis' father that he would look after the young lad.

He pushed his glasses up on his face with a sigh. Stirring the soup on the stove as it warmed up. At this moment his 'motherly instincts' as Gladio called them was kicking in. The prince had managed to catch a cold.

 _They had been traveling around the Vesperpool when a rain storm suddenly hit. It was a drizzling cold rain, one that went straight to the bones. Noctis had ditched his jacket prior to getting to the fishing dock. A shiver ran through his body._

 _"Man its freezing." He muttered_

 _"You'll catch a cold if you don't wear a jacket." Ignis reminded him_

 _The prince shrugged. "It's not that cold." He summoned his rod again, after a few unsuccessful casts he decided to give up. "Let's go back; we got that stone for Dino." The other three agreed as a shiver ran through Noctis._

 _The rain increased. Noctis' shirt was soaked plum through leaving him feeling like he took a shower with his clothes on. He kept shivering._

 _"You okay buddy?" asked Prompto_

 _He nodded. "I'm good." Another shiver. "Let's just get in the car."_

 _They got in the Regalia and Ignis turned up the heat. Noctis didn't feel up to driving. He silently wished he had kept his spare shirt in the back seat with him._

 _They were on the high way when it suddenly hit Noctis. He sneezed harshly._

 _"Bless you." Said Gladio_

 _A few more sneezes later, Noctis was shivering again._

 _"Uh Iggy, I think Noct is sick." Said Prompto as he looked to the back seat._

 _"Am not." Noctis said his voice sounding nasally._

 _"What did I tell you about your jacket?" Ignis asked_

 _"To make sure it matched my outfit." He said sarcastically_

 _The advisor shot him a dirty look._

 _"Whoa there dude." Said Prompto_

 _Gladio reached over to Noctis and placed his hand on his forehead. "He's burning up."_

 _"Looks like we'll have to stop at a motel for the night. Sleeping outside is not advisable." Said Ignis as he guided the car over to the nearest outpost._

"How's our patient Prompto?" Ignis asked as he poured the soup into a cup.

"Asleep. He's pretty much used up this box of tissues."

"That's to be expected." Said Ignis as he came into the room, he looked at the young prince. He was breathing harshly, sweat beading on his forehead. Prompto sat beside him watching over him not wanting to leave his friend. Gladio was leaning against the wall.

"Hey Noct wake up. Iggy's got food." Prompto said giving his friend a small shake

Noctis opened his eyes. They looked hazy as the fever was taking hold of him.

They set him up and got a tray to give him his soup.

"This hit him awfully fast." Noted Gladio looking down at the prince

Ignis pushed his glasses on his face. "I suspect it was from repeatedly going out in the rain without a jacket."

Gladio chuckled. "Hopefully the prince will learn to listen to his mother."

Ignis rolled his eyes as another sneezing fit hit Noctis.

"Next time I see a dark cloud I'm wearing my jacket." Said Noctis as he blew his nose, "Because being sick sucks."

"Just take your time to recover. We'll wait right here for you." Said Ignis

"Thanks guys."

"But if you get me sick I'm going to kick your ass." Said Gladio with a wink

"Don't make me sneeze on you." Said the prince as he sipped his soup

They laughed afterwards. It took a few days but Noctis did recover from his cold and true to his word he always wore his jacket when it was a rainy cold day.


	3. Chapter 3

Friendship's Light

Chapter 3

Flowers for Iris

Gladio flipped through the pages of his book as they were heading towards the Rock of Ravatogh. The sun was slowly dipping behind the mountains indicating the end of the day.

The group was heading to the nearest camp site. Gladio had heard of this place in Lestallum, the nearby area had that flower that Iris liked.

While they set up the camp he mulled on this. He loved Iris, but he felt guilty for not being there for her when Insomnia fell. He's dear sweet little sister was a refugee. He wished he could do something for her. They all had been through so much and he remembered his mental torment thinking about his sister after they found out about the city falling. He knew if the King was dead most likely his father was dead. The shield would die protecting its king. Much like he himself would die for Noctis.

He proposed to Noctis to get the flower the next morning. It was an easy trip. Noctis suggested he give it to Iris himself. Gladio suggested he did it.

He knew Iris had feelings for Noctis. Not that it would matter now as he was destined to marry Luna now. But he knew within his heart he would like to see his sister happy and that meant being with the prince then so be it. Noct wasn't a bad guy after all.

They arrived back in Lestallum; Gladio followed behind Noctis as the prince went to give the flowers to Iris.

"Iris." The chosen king started

Iris turned around to look at him. "Yes Noctis?"

He held out the flowers. "Umm I thought maybe you might like these."

A big broad grin filled her face filling Gladio's heart with joy. He may not have been able to protect her from the horrors of war, but he could at least do something to bring a smile to her face.

She hugged Noctis tightly. "Thank you. I umm going to put these in water." She looked around. "Umm would you like to hang out with me later?"

Noctis gave her smile. "Sure."

"Okay, I'm going to water these and uh I'll be right back." She said heading into the hotel

Noctis gave a smile sigh. "You can come out Gladio."

Gladio chuckled. "Knew I was here did ya?"

"You're about as discrete as a fart in an elevator."

"Harsh Noct." He said smiling, "Thought we were going to go and find that dog tag for Dave today."

The prince shrugged. "Eh it can wait a little longer. Iris really seems happy about that flower."

"That's because you gave it to her." He said and studied the prince. "If it was me it would have awkward and such."

"Things like that are only as awkward as you want them to be."

The shield rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, well you wouldn't understand. You don't have any siblings."

Noctis gave a small smile. "Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to have them." He looked back to Gladio. "But I got you guys so it's kind of like having siblings."

"I'll stay close behind you two as you walk through town." He said changing the subject.

"Worried I'll do something to Iris?" he asked with a teasing tone

Gladio chuckled. "Just doing my job."

"You should keep an eye on Prompto, I left him with Vyv he's probably got use like fifty photo quests by now."

Gladio raised an eyebrow. "Nothing wrong with that, Vyv pays well for his photos."

"Yeah well I'm not in the mood to climb another volcano or something else as bad for a while."

Gladio slinked back into the shadows when Iris emerged from the hotel.

"Sorry it took so long. I couldn't find a glass or anything for the flowers."

"It's fine." The two headed off to the café for lunch.

Gladio crossed his arms considering following. He shook his head deciding to let them be and set off to find Prompto before he really did take on fifty quests for them.


	4. Chapter 4

Friendship's Light

Chapter 4

Duty

Noctis sat there wringing his hands. Today was just not a good day for them. Today was the day that his friend's "duty" to him really hit hard.

His friends were Crownsguard they were there to protect him. He sat his face in his hands.

It wasn't fair.

"Noct." Said Ignis as he walked into the room, Noctis didn't look up at him. "You need to rest Noct."

Noctis shook his head. "I'm not leaving him." He rested his hands on his knees. "I promised him Iggy."

The older man sighed. "I understand how you feel Noct. But refusing to rest does not help anyone."

Noctis looked back at his friend. He bit his lip tears threatening to spill over. He was glad Ignis came to get him. Gladio would have yelled; told him that it was there job to risk their lives for him. He clenched his fists and fought back a sob. "It's not fair."

Ignis pulled up a chair and sat beside him. "It may not be fair but Prompto knew the risks when he agreed to join the Crownsguard."

Noctis let a sob slip and Ignis placed a hand on his shoulder. "He wasn't supposed to get hurt. I promised I'd protect him." He rubbed his eyes. "Prom doesn't know how to fight properly. He wasn't trained for this unlike us."

Ignis nodded. "I think despite all that Prompto holds his own very well."

Noctis huffed. "Well if he was doing all that well how did he get hurt this time?"

The advisor sighed. "Him and Gladio have been training in the morning… he's working on Prompto's dodging technics."

He cut him off. "Dodging?"

"He's learning. I've seen it. While he may never be as strong as Gladio he is learning to know when to attack and when to back down."

He went to speak again.

"Noctis. Don't beat yourself up over what happened. Remember it is our job. Prompto was much closer to you than any of us. He did us proud defending you." He stood up from his seat. "Prompto's wounds will heal in due time. Now go and rest."

Noctis nodded. He reached over and took his friend's hand. "I'm sorry buddy."

He felt him squeeze his hand back. "It's okay Noct." He whispered half asleep. He opened his blue eyes. "Tis just a flesh wound."

Noctis suppressed a laugh. "What if I told you your arm was gone?" he asked with humor

He shook his head. "Nah, besides it was hit to my midsection." He said waving his free hand over said section. "Just a gunshot… from an Imperial Solider… did it have to be removed?"

"No it just passed through and hit a tree. We brought you to a doctor at the hunter HQ. He said you got lucky. A few inches either way and…" he stopped another sob. "You'd uh… you know."

"Made a fine corpse?" he asked with a smile

Only Prompto could crack a joke about being dead. "Yeah." He said weakly patting his hand.

"I wonder if it will scar?" he asked his hand hovering over where he got hit. "I hear chicks dig scars… think it'll help my chances?"

That made Noctis laugh for real. "What are you going to do hold your shirt up and show it off?"

"Hell ya." He said nodding. "And my four pack of abs." He smirked. "I may not be built like Gladio but I'll show off what little I got along with my scar."

Noctis reached over and roughed up his hair. "Idiot." He said with affection

Prompto smiled. "I know."

He sighed. "Listen uh… thanks for what you did today…" he took his hand again. "I'm glad you're okay I don't…" he frowned. He knew what he wanted to say, but saying it was hard. He growled to himself and tried again. "I'd miss you if you were gone so… don't get your ass killed okay?"

"Okay Noct." He said

He patted his head again. "Want to play some King's Knight?"

"Hell ya!" He exclaimed as he took his phone from the night stand.

The next day Ignis walked into the room to find both asleep with their phones in their hands and Noctis with his head on the bed out like a light. The advisor sighed. "I thought I told you to rest." He said to himself as he pushed up his glasses.


	5. Chapter 5

Friendship's Light

Chapter 5

Run

Gladio worked on his stretches before his morning run in the Central Insomnia Park. It was a bright sunny day already that morning. There were several walkers and joggers out already starting their morning routine. A few people sat at benches drinking their coffee and admiring the morning light.

Mid-stretch he noticed someone beside him. A tall teen with bright blond hair reaching up to the heavens; he blinked realizing that person seemed familiar. He looked over to see the young teen that Noctis had been hanging out with before. What was the teen's name?

The teen's bright blue eyes flashed with recognition for a second. "Oh aren't you Noct's trainer?" he asked his voice chipper for the morning time.

Gladio nodded. "I am." He extended a hand. "Aren't you Noct's friend?"

The teen took his hand. "Uh yeah. I'm his best friend."

"So whatcha doing at the park?" he asked resuming his stretches

"About to go for a run, I usually go for a run around my neighborhood but since I was in the area I figured I'd run here. Noct said it was a great place." He noticed the dark haired man's eyebrow raised. "Oh I uh stayed at Noct's place last night. I hope that's okay?"

He shrugged. "Prince's place not mine." He finished his last stretch and stood up right. "What's your name by the way?"

"Prompto." He said grinning like the cat that ate the canary.

"Well then Prompto fancy having a run with me?"

"Sure sounds awesome." He practically jumped in his spot. "I've never had a running partner before; Noct never gets up in the morning."

He chuckled. "Alright let's go."

The two took off on the jog. Gladio noticed that the boy had good form and he was a pretty fast runner. It was clear he had been running for a long time.

After they finished running, Gladio got them both a bottle of water. "So uh how did you get so good at running?" he asked casually

Prompto frowned as if assessing his answer. Swallowing some water he answered. "Well this is hard to believe now but…" he sighed. "I used to be a heavy kid. I decided to make a positive change in my life and took up running. The more I ran the better I got, the better I felt and more weight I loss. As I kept going I found I had more energy after a run so I just kept it up. You know to keep healthy and all."

Gladio hmmed in agreement and said. "Well you make one hell of a running partner."

He smiled. "How about we do this more often? Say every Saturday morning while Noct is still asleep."

"Sure."

Gladio stood outside of the tent doing his stretches as Ignis started up the grill.

"Going for a run?" the cook asked as he adjusted his glasses.

"Yup."

Prompto wondered out of the tent his running shoes already on. "Ready Gladio?" he asked "I already did my stretches in the tent."

"Of course I'm ready."

Ignis chuckled. "Always off for a run before the prince rises from sleep." He smirked as he placed food on the grill. "Just come back by breakfast."

"It's a promise!" Prompto shouted

The pair took off and the cook wondered if the prince would wake up after he smelled breakfast. He shrugged he was impressed the two of them would be so eager to run especially after running around the woods all day yesterday looking for their latest hunt. They were an interesting group.


End file.
